A man teaches a child to wrap a zongzi (rice dumplings) in Haiyou, capital of south China's Hainan Province, June 4, 2011. As the Duanwu Festival draws near, handmade Zongzi, a kind of traditional food for the festival, became more and more popular. The Duanwu Festival, also known as Dragon Boat Festival, falls on June 6 this year.

Heavy rains in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River in China have eased the drought in the region, but authorities warned that ensuing floods could further hamper the country's crop production amid soaring inflation.

Provinces that had been ravaged by a long dry spell, such as Jiangxi and Hunan, are expected to experience torrential rains until the middle of the month, the China Meteorological Administration (CMA) said in a statement on Monday, warning related departments to be on the alert against possible floods.

People watch the fast-flowing Jishui River in Dexing, Jiangxi Province after days of rainfall caused the river's water level to surge.

China's first "Blue book of the United States" was formally released in Beijing on June 9 during the Annual Conference of the Chinese Association for American Studies as well as a celebration held to mark the 30th anniversary of Institute of American Studies under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

The blue book systematically introduces economy, politics, society and culture of the United States.

In 2010, the overall employment rate of college graduates is nearly 90 percent, which means employment has rebounded from level it was at during the world economic crisis, and the average monthly income is 2,479 yuan, according to a recent report by MyCOS Institute, a third-party research institution specialized in education assessment.

China, the second largest economy in the world, can avoid the so-called middle-income trap if it implements appropriate policies, a World Bank economist said.

"The middle-income trap is not inevitable," Justin Yifu Lin, chief economist and senior vice president of the World Bank, told Xinhua in an interview. "To a large extent, it is subject to policy and development pattern."

The term "middle-income trap" refers to countries stagnating and not growing to advanced country level. Their per capita income ranges from 2,000 to 6,000 U.S. dollars, unable to make breakthroughs.

The yuan needs to be more freely convertible and widely used in global trade in order to be included in the special drawing rights (SDR) basket of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), John Lipsky, acting managing director of the IMF, said on Thursday.

"It is agreed that the renminbi is likely to become a candidate for inclusion in the SDR basket," Lipsky said at a news briefing in Beijing. "But it needs to become more freely and widely used in international transactions."

China on Thursday urged Vietnam to halt all acts which violate Chinese sovereignty over the Nansha Islands and the surrounding waters, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei.

China has indisputable sovereignty over the Nansha Islands and the surrounding waters, which belong to the South China Sea, Hong said, adding that Chinese fishermen have been fishing on the Vanguard Bank of the Nansha Islands from generation to generation.

China said Wednesday that there is no such a thing as an "independent candidate," as it's not recognized by law, amid ongoing elections starting this year of lawmakers at the county and township legislatures.

The Electoral Law stipulates that candidates for lawmakers at the county- and township-levels should be first nominated as "deputy candidate" and then confirmed as "official deputy candidate" in due legal procedures, said an official of the National People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislature.

The official, head of the Commission for Legislative Affairs of the NPC Standing Committee, made the remarks when asked about campaign announcements by "independent candidates" to run for deputies to the grassroots people's congresses. These announcements were made on the web over the past few weeks.

The Constitution and the Electoral Law grant qualified citizens the right to vote and to be elected, but election activities must adhere with the law and its specific provisions for the election procedures of lawmakers, the official said.

The 10th International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Asia Security Summit, also known as the Shangri-La Dialogue, successfully concluded in Singapore on June 5. The attendees had in-depth discussions on bilateral and multilateral defense cooperation during the three-day summit. As a major regional cooperation platform, the dialogue will help dispel suspicion and build up mutual trust among the Asia-Pacific countries, said John Chipman, director-general of IISS, organizer of the Shangri-La Dialogue.

Hong Kong, Shanghai and Shenzhen have the most skyscrapers in the country, according to the first China's skyscraper report released by www.motiancity.com.

Hong Kong has 58 skyscrapers, followed by Shanghai's 51 and Shenzhen's 46. Beijing was ninth place with 13 high-rises.

China has been on a building spree of modern skyscrapers. Five of the world's top 10 tallest buildings are in China. Apart from the tallest 828-meter-high Burj Khalifa in Dubai, the second tallest, the third, the fourth, the seventh and ninth are in Taipei, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Nanjing and Guangzhou.

China will issue a national territory development plan, the first of its kind since the founding of the People's Republic of China, said a government official on Wednesday.

The plan divides the country's territory into four categories: development zones to be optimized, key development zones, limited development zones and prohibited development zones, said Xu Xianping, vice minister of the National Development and Reform Commission, at a press conference.

President Hu Jintao has called at various occasions for Asia's inclusive development and made it one of the themes of the country's 12th five-year development plan, underscoring how China will reorient its growth model to make economic benefits more widely shared.

The idea was initiated by the Asian Development Bank in 2007 and enshrined by the United Nations as one of its millenium goals.

The questions popping up here are how China could translate this into more tangible policy actions, and why China is supposed to pursue the route of inclusive development and rise.

The State Council, China's cabinet, said on May 18 that the Three Gorges faced "urgent problems" of geological disaster prevention, relocation and ecological protection, noted the negative impact on downstream water supplies and river transport, and vowed to restore things to order within the next eight years.

The spectacular dam has been dubbed as China's most impressive man-made wonder since it came into being in 1992, second only to the Great Wall, inviting boundless respect and admiration. But it seems that, all of a sudden, "the national pride" became a "problem child" just overnight.

WuMaoDang (0.5 RMB Party) is Chinese vocabulary for Internet commentators Or Wu Mao (something of 50-cent in English) Internet commentators, people hired to post comments favorable towards the government policies in an attempt to shape public opinion on various Internet message boards. The commentators are said to be paid for each pro-government posting WuMao (0.5 RMB). On the flip side, there is another Internet jargon, WuMeifenDang (50-cent Party) to describe those, inspired by Western values and even sponsored by some anti-China forces abroad, posting comments to vilify and demonize China.

These two newly coined terms in the Internet age are so popular that they have spurred a lively discussion at the just concluded Sino-German Media Forum in Berlin.

The dogfight between the two major U.S. political parties over whether to raise the federal deficit ceiling and avoid an immediate default on American debts has just begun.

The stakes are high that, if no agreement is reached in due time, the U.S. would be sent to another financial crisis, and the global economy would face the dim prospect of another great recession, just three years after a devastating economic catastrophe caused by a sub-prime mortgage debacle done by the Wall Street.

China, now holding more than 8 percent, or nearly $1.2 trillion U.S. Treasury bonds, is certainly concerned about the potential default quagmire, as the security of the debts repayment is on the line.

Currently, Chinese online chat-rooms are awash with ordinary people's demands for Beijing to draw down its purchase of American debts, and shift to other securer investments including buying more oil and resources as strategic reserves.

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Participants prepare for a dragon boat race on a river in Zhucun village in Guangzhou, South China's Guangdong province, June 2, 2011. More than 50 dragon boats took part in the race to celebrate the upcoming Dragon Boat Festival, which falls on the fifth day of the fifth month in the Chinese lunar calendar, June 6 this year.

People dressed in ancient costumes of Han ethnic group participate in a ceremony worshipping Qu Yuan, a patriotic poet during the Warring States period (475 B.C.-221 B.C.), in Nanjing, capital of east China's Jiangsu Province, June 5, 2011. Chinese traditional Dragon Boat Festival, or Duanwu Festival, falls on June 6 this year, which is held to pay homage to Qu Yuan who drowned himself to protest his fatuous king.

The Third Beijing Dragon Boat Culture Festival kicked off at Shunyi Olympic Rowing-Canoeing Park over the weekend. Visitors were treated to a whole series of cultural folk displays, dragon and lion dances a cultural heritage bazaar and three days of dragon boat races at the Olympic water sports venue.

HANOI - Vietnam announced a live ammunition drill in the South China Sea.

Vietnam said Friday its Navy would carry out two exercises totaling nine hours Monday in an area off the country's central Quang Nam province. The announcement posted on the state-owned Northern Maritime Safety Corp's website warned boats and ships to stay out of the area. It was the first time Vietnam has issued such an alert about conducting maritime drills.

BEIJING - China's top planner on Friday asked local authorities and energy enterprises to increase power supplies to meet household demand in summer as the country faces a tight power supply.

Liu Tienan, deputy head of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), said during a video conference that local governments and energy enterprises should bring into play current production capacity and work to increase power supplies and lift energy efficiency.

"The power situation this summer is complicated, not optimistic in general and grave in some regions," according to a statement posted on the NDRC's website after the meeting.

Excessive growth in some high-energy consuming industries and massive use of air-conditioners will evidently lift power demand in summer, the statement said.

TIANJIN - China needs to further develop and open its financial industry to better facilitate the country's overseas investment, a former senior trade official said on Friday.

"China needs to strengthen its service industries, especially the financial industry, to accelerate the pace and raise the quality of its overseas investments," said Long Yongtu, the former deputy minister of commerce and chief negotiator of China's entry of the World Trade Organization.

Long made the remarks at the Fifth China International Private Equity Forum (CIPEF), an annual direct investment and financing event in China.

Long noted that China has long possessed a high level of foreign exchange reserves, which is unsustainable and has put great pressure on the country's overall fiscal and monetary policies.

TIANJIN - The Italian luxury real estate developer and fashion retailer RDM Group opened its first outlet store in China on Thursday, in partnership with the US Waitex Group, amid the country's enthusiasm for buying luxury goods.

The store, Florentia Village, located in Wuqing, which lies between Beijing and Tianjin, is the first Chinese development in RDM's international portfolio of retail assets. The investment totaled more than 1 billion yuan ($154.4 million).

"We chose to launch our first China outlet under the brand name Florentia Village in Wuqing because of its potential to attract a new generation of stylish Chinese consumers with fast-growing disposable income in the luxury sector," said Ivano Poma, chairman and chief executive officer of Florentia Village and managing director of RDM Asia.

In the first ever Chinese City Skyscraper Rankings, released on Monday in Shanghai, Hong Kong topped the list with its 58 skyscrapers, and Shanghai got second with 51 skyscrapers, the Oriental Morning Post reported Tuesday.

People walk near the World Financial Center and Jin Mao Tower in Shanghai

The whole nation has begun a musical campaign to mark the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, which falls this year.

Red songs, the name given to songs written in praise of the Party, the country and the spirit of revolution, have inspired several generations to struggle for the prosperity of the country, and now are filling China with vigorous new strength. They can be heard in schools, communities and villages - even in canteens and jails.

Women rehearse a dance in praise of the Communist Party of China in Tianshan community of Shanghai's Changning district on June 3

The roundtable, held on June 2, is entitled "Hong Kong and the Internationalization of the RMB". Debate over the internationalization of the yuan has moved forward from speculating on whether it will happen to looking at how China will manage the process. What is the role of Hong Kong in helping the currency play a more important role in the global economy?

LHASA - One out of every eight residents in the city of Lhasa is over the age of 60, according to a recent government survey.

By the end of this year, about 70,000 of Lhasa's 560,000 residents will be 60 years of age or older, said Tharchin, an official with the civil affairs bureau of Lhasa, capital of Southwest China's Tibet autonomous region.

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BEIJING, June 10 (Xinhua) -- China has made much headway in energy savings during the 11th Five-Year Plan period (2006-2010), the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Friday.

Duanwu Festival, also known as Dragon Boat Festival, is a traditional and statutory holiday associated with Chinese and other East Asian and Southeast Asian societies as well. The festival is also celebrated in countries with significant Chinese populations, such as in Singapore and Malaysia.

For more insight on choosing the new leader of the IMF, we're joined in the studio by our current affairs commentator, Professor Liu Baocheng, from the University of International Business and Economics.

Q1: IMF executive directors representing Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa said that the selection of the managing director on the basis of nationality undermines the legitimacy of the fund. What's your take on this argument? Is the developing world ready to lead the IMF?

Q2: What's China's attitude towards the selection of the new IMF leader?

Following the completion of the National College Entrance Exam, or Gaokao in Chinese, students and their parents find themselves facing an even bigger dilemma--the application process.

The two-day National College Entrance Exam is finally over. But very few students are feeling truly relaxed. Most students and their parents are trying to solve the difficulties that surround the application process. In theory the process should be a two-way choice between universities and students. However, the application inevitably involves Chinese parents, who traditionally put too much pressure and expectation on their offsprings.

A student of Yuyuantan High School in Beijing, said, “I personally prefer accounting or statistics. I want to choose a major like that. But my parents want me to learn something more technical, something you can make a living from.”

For more on Abdul Ati Al-Obeidi's visit to China and China's stance on the Libyan crisis, we are joined on the phone by Professor He Wenping, Director of African Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Q1, Thank you for joining us, Professor He. What stance does China take on Libya's political crisis? Does the meeting between Chinese diplomats and the Libyan opposition send any signal at all?

Q2, Among the major powers, only China and Russia maintain contact with both sides. What role can this play?

The Chinese Foreign Ministry says a Beijing visit by Libya's Secretary for Foreign Liaisons and International Cooperation, Abdul Ati Al-Obeidi, will last from Tuesday to Thursday.

Obeidi, who's serving as a Special Envoy for his country's government, is scheduled to meet with Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi during the trip. Both sides will discuss the current situation in Libya, and discuss finding a political solution to Libyan crisis.

Hong Lei, Spokesman, Chinese Foreign Ministry, said, "China urges all sides to call an immediate ceasefire, and resolve the Libyan crisis through political channels. We believe the future of Libya should be decided by the Libyan people, and China respects the Libyan people's choices. We hope all sides in Libya can focus on the interests of the country and its people, fully consider the mediation proposals put forward by the African Union, and mitigate the situation as soon as possible."

For more on the college entrance exam, we're now joined in the studio by our Current Affairs Commentator, Raymond Zhou.

Q1: University enrollment is reaching historic levels in China, with more than 70 percent of high school students set to enter college this year. On the other hand, the number of students taking the test has fallen below 10 million. Many institutions of higher learning are working hard to attract enrollees, but some analysts say this trend offers an opportunity to conduct education reform. What's your take on this view?

Now, as you may know, Chinese people love jade. Scholars say the affection goes back as far as the Neolithic Age. Having that much legacy, jade carvings are not simply for decoration. They are a widely revered art form in the country.

And now artists from Shanghai have brought their unique styles to their counterparts and jade lovers here in Beijing.

Shanghai-style jade carving goes back to the 1840s. The last 160 years have seen Shanghai artists take the legacy and imbue it with their own features. They have been influenced not only by China's traditional art like shadow puppets and paper-cutting, but also western art forms like oil painting, sculpture and photography. And it's clearly seen in a contrast with Beijing style known for its delicacy and rich colors.

Jade carving artist said, "Whether the carving is about natural scenery or a portrait, the key is to express your heart and your feelings."

And the carving depends on what you've got on hand. You won't get the same stone a second time, so each design is tailored for each work. And one mistake, even a small one, could spoil the entire piece.

The college entrance exam is known as the most pressure packed test in the world. The exam is a make or break moment for youth across the country. CCTV takes a look at the lives of the most promising students in one of the most competitive regions for test takers.

The gao kao; A marathon examination taken by millions. For the successful it offers a road to a bright future. A Chinese rite of passage, and every step counts. The number taking the test is falling. But for those who do, the competition is as fierce as ever. Expectations are high. Only a fraction will make it to the top universities in the country. The result of the two-day test could define their fate in a fast changing world. They will face their fears and some will conquer them. With the support of a nation, the future rests on the shoulders of a generation coming of age; The Chinese college entrance exam.

Defense ministers from Asia-Pacific countries are gathering in Singapore for the Shangri-La Dialogue, an important forum to security challenges and cooperation. Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie is currently attending the conference. CCTV correspondent Andy Saputra reports from Singapore.

Military and political leaders from over 28 countries are gathering in Singapore this weekend, for a major security conference that has been known as the Shangri-la security dialogue.

The event has transformed itself into one of the most prominent security dialogue in the region.

For the latest on the Shangri-La Dialogue, we now go to our correspondent Andy Saputra in Singapore. Hi, Andy.

Q1: The dialogue is to begin within an hour, what are the hot topics on the agenda ?

Q2: Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie is going to the security summit for the first time, while it will be the last time for US Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who retires in June. What are the two likely to discuss in terms of security issues?

After experiencing one of the worst droughts in decades, residents along the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, are finally welcoming rainfall.

The downpours started in Jiangxi and Hunan provinces on Friday night, followed by a heavy storm in Anhui early Saturday morning. This is easing the effects of the long dry spell.

The precipitation level has reached 50 millimeters in northern Jiangxi. The water mark at Poyang, the nation's largest freshwater lake, is also starting to rise, after recently hitting the lowest point in recorded history. Local farmers are using more than 500 agricultural machines to seed rice and replant cotton.

The State Council's information office has issued a report on China's environmental situation over the last year. Officials say environmental quality has partially improved, but on the whole the problems are pressing. Acid rain, agricultural pollution, a deteriorating ecological system and surface water pollution are some of the major concerns.

In the meantime some environment protection projects have met or even exceeded their targets, such as the reduction of sulfur dioxide with emissions falling 14 percent compared to 2005. However as China starts its 12th Five Year Plan this year, it will be under growing pressure to solve multiple problems.

As the race for the top job at the IMF continues, European nations are expected to support a candidate from the region, so as to continue the agency's uninterrupted support to the debt-laden region. But they face challenges from new emerging economies seeking a bigger say in the IMF. Meanwhile, the U.S. is widely expected to throw its support behind French candidate, Christine Lagarde.

Analysts say the new IMF chief is more likely to be European. That's due to two factors. The IMF has been led by Europeans since the global lender's founding, and it's become something of an established tradition. More pressingly, the lingering Eurozone debt crisis has become the IMF's most immediate priority. European countries will put their weight behind a European chief, so as to guarantee the agency's support to the region.

But new emerging economies, headed by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, are laying down the gauntlet. In a joint statement, the BRICS countries say the selection of the new IMF chief should disregard the criteria that the successful candidate must come from a European country. They're also calling for a greater representation of developing countries within the IMF.See Kaixin's -FOLLOW THE DEBATE: The Selection of the next IMF President

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is urging developing countries to stand united, in order to foster reforms at the IMF, and other Bretton-Woods institutions. He adds that this process is not a "one-shot operation."

He said, "The reform of global institutions, and that includes the Bretton Woods institutions, has been high on the agenda of developing countries for a long time. But we have also to recognize that international relations, beyond a point, our power relations, and that those who wield power do not wish to yield ground very easily.

So, I am not very well-informed about what is going on with regard to the successor, to the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, but I do recognize that the struggle for the transformation of global institutions, including the Bretton Woods institutions, is not a one-shot operation. It is a long process, in which all the developing countries have to stand united."

As one of the areas worst hit by the drought, Central China's Hubei Province has many paddy fields thirsty for water. CCTV reporter, Shen Le travelled to one village to find out how the dry spell has affected this year's rice harvest.

This is the biggest water reserve in Loukou village. It hasn't rained for more than 3 months and there's very little water left.

Shen said, "Usually it’s the season to fight floods, local villagers would ride on these boats to reinforce dams along the way. However, the drought has reduced water levels significantly, and as you can see, all the boats are stranded."

The highlights of today's operation will be a close look at the main structure of the ancient vessel-- the bow, stern, masts, sails, and possibly anchors and cargo cabins.

Many legends surround China's greatest sea-farer Zheng He and his amazing voyages and fleets. All these marvellous feats were accomplished almost 6 centuries ago, much earlier than any western sea-faring nations.

There's been plenty of reaction abroad on Kim Jong-Il's visit to China, to gauge it, we are joined again by current affairs commentator Zhang Chuanjie.

Q1. Both South Korean and western media say Kim's trip is to study China's economic development, and encourage DPRK to launch its economic reform at home, but some doubt whether the trip achieve this aim. What's your view on this? And what are the factors that hamper economic reform in DPRK?

Q2. There has also been a lot of speculation overseas on the DPRK's nuclear issue. Both leaders have said they want to restart the "six party talks" over denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. However, no new proposal has been made. So what's the major obstacle in restarting the talks? And what driving forces are needed?

Some people call it a professional unit of the People's Liberation Army fighting on the Internet. At a recent press conference held by the Defense Ministry, a spokesman clarified the team's role.

Geng Yansheng, Spokesman of Defense Ministry, said, "At present, Internet safety has become an international issue. It not only affects our civil societies but also the military. China is also a victim of Internet attacks. Right now our Internet protection system is still relatively weak. Improving Internet safety is one of the most prominent tasks of our military training. The purpose of the "Cyber Blue Team" is to improve our ability to safeguard Internet security."

The Defense Ministry also emphasized that the "Cyber Blue Team" are not hackers and that the International community should not misunderstand the purpose of it. "Cyber Blue Team" is just a nickname used within the military training routines and is not an actual unit within the PLA.

Little rain is expected in the coming 10 days, and high temperatures are likely to hit Central China's Hubei province. The region continues to suffer from the worst drought since 1954.

In central China's Hubei province, Honghu Lake is drying up, making fishing a problem for local residents. Now many fishermen are standing in the water to catch fish, something they had never done before.

This couple just returned from fishing. They have about 10 kilos of crayfish on the boat. The wife says this is a full month's work, but in the past they could catch this much in one day. She says the fish are now drying up on the lakebed.

The UK taught the world how to produce in the 19th century, the US showed the world how to consume in the 20th century, and China needs to demonstrate how to develop in a sustainable way in the 21st century.

A Chinese analyst said on Wednesday that the US had exaggerated Beijing military threat to exacerbate frictions between China and its neighbors, as Leon Panetta, director of the Central Intelligence Agency, said China appears to be building the capability "to fight and win short-duration, high-intensity conflicts" along its borders.

"China's near-term focus appears to be on preparing for potential contingencies involving Taiwan, including possible US military intervention," Bloomberg quoted Panetta as saying in a hearing with the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Meanwhile, The New York Times (NYT) said, "China is trying hard to make up for its diplomatic setbacks in 2010, when, in quick succession, it picked territorial fights with Vietnam, the Philippines, Japan and India, and angered South Korea by not condemning Pyongyang's aggressions."

Shi Yinhong, director of the Center of American Studies at the Renmin University of China, told the Global Times that the US has been active in Southeast Asian affairs in the past few years. Panetta's comments could be seen as a provocation by the US to exaggerate tensions between China and its neighbors.

Although there were some frictions between China and its neighbors, the Chinese government has put a strong emphasis on improving regional relations this year, Shi said.

China has established consultation and dialogue mechanisms on defense and security with 22 countries, and has military-to-military exchanges with more than 150 countries, Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie said at a regional security dialogue on Sunday.

Speaking at the Shangri-La Dialogue organized by the London- based International Institute for Strategic Studies, Liang, also a State Councilor, said China has been promoting mutual trust and common interests with other countries through defense and security cooperation, with close to 400 military delegations to and from China each year.

China signed an agreement with Russia in 2009 to notify each other of missile launches. Between the defense ministries of China and the United States, direct phone link has also been set up.

A recent traffic incident and the ensuing protests have aroused unusual attention, because it occurred in Xilinhot, Inner Mongolia, where ethnic Mongolians live alongside Han people.

In some media reports, the incident has been depicted as a Mongolian protest against Han's dominance, similar to the Xinjiang riots in 2009 and Tibet unrest in 2008.

However, it is improper to make this link. The Mongolian protests, over a herd being run over by a Han truck driver, are not a politically driven demonstration. Some of their requests are reasonable, and should be responded to by the local government.

Inner Mongolia has been a model area where different ethnic group co-habit in harmony, but like many other ethnic areas, it faces the difficulties of balancing a growing economy and preserving minority culture and lifestyle. The best way can only be found by coming to a consensus.

Anger of local Mongolians toward the Han driver is understandable. The anger is also partly a result of their anxiety over a wave of industrialization, and how the mining industry might affect their lives. We believe the majority of Chinese sympathize with their reasonable requests.

It is worth noticing the protests saw no violence between different ethnic groups. Groups such as the little-known US-based Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Center tried to advocate the interests of local Mongolians. With little connection to the local situation, their appeal is questionable.

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'WITHOUT Deng Xiaoping there would be no opening-up policy," former prime minister Kevin Rudd told Deng Xiaoping's eldest son at the opening ceremony for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. "No opening up, no Olympic Games," continued Rudd, as he recounted his conversation with Deng Pufang to Caijing magazine. "And I think that is true if you look at the last 30 years since the Third Plenum of the 11th Congress of the Communist Party of China in 1978."

She was very clear in her thinking, Hua Guofeng was not up to the job. He made no impression on her or China. He was an appointed of Mao’s. Indeed it is now thought in China that we was an illegitimate son of Mao.

She remembers Guofeng’s photo going up in her classroom besides Mao’s photo. In particular, she remembers that she didn’t pay it any attention because he so resembled Mao, it was like having two photos of Mao on the wall.

She remembers that no-one had heard of him in China before his appointment by Mao.

She remembers that has ineffectual.

Apart from that, she never remembers him.

He would have had powerful people behind him in Beijing. The fact that they let him go in favour of Deng speaks volumes as to what they thought of him.

She admires Deng for what he achieved for China.

Western Kaixin found three of her observations interesting in the context of this article.

The first was that Hua Guofeng immediately ordered the arrest of the Gang of Four. Xiaosui comments that this probably came from Mao and could not have been achieved unless Mao had sanctioned it before he died.

The second is that Hua Guofeng started to reform the education system in 1977 and also started to bring the students back from the country.

The third is that she clearly remembers the first two changes Deng implemented: i) giving back the property that Mao had taken into State ownership, in effect, changing property rights from communal to private. ii) Opening up Guangdong. Guangdong because the people in Guangdong had many relatives overseas.

Deng started as he meant to go on, implementing capitalism in China.

Hua Guofeng sank without trace until about three years ago when Xiaosui remembers talk of him being Mao’s son starting to surface.

China’s imports grew by a surprising 28.4% in May while export growth slowed, according to customs data released Friday. That led to a much smaller than expected trade surplus of $13.05 billion. Analysts weigh in:

How big is the Chinese economy? Answering that question is not as straightforward as looking up the number on the National Bureau of Statistics website. China’s GDP data is haunted by controversy, with widespread doubts about its accuracy.

As more revelations about French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde’s recent visit to China emerge, there are reasons to believe that she may have just secured Beijing’s backing for her bid to lead the International Monetary Fund.

SHANGHAI— Morgan Stanley on Friday launched a securities joint venture in China, as it seeks to rebuild a presence in the country's booming investment banking industry after ending a partnership with China International Capital Corp.

The joint venture with China Fortune Securities Co. will allow the U.S. investment bank to underwrite yuan-denominated stocks and bonds in mainland China. China Fortune is also known as Huaxin Securities Co ...

BEIJING—China's government acknowledged that it was falling behind schedule on its ambitious plans to build tens of millions of units of low-income housing over the next five years as way to help ordinary Chinese buy homes and to cushion any downturn in the property market.

BANGKOK—Tensions in the potentially resource-rich South China Sea escalated Friday as Vietnam announced a a live ammunition drill in an apparent response to China's demand that the Vietnamese halt all oil exploration in the area.

... But now, amid increasing worry over the congestion and pollution caused by the rapid rise of the car in Chinese cities, motorcycles and especially electric powered scooters — also known as e-bikes — are getting a second look as a transport option.

... But now there may be reason for concern in the ranks of the leadership. It’s not that Beijing is facing a whole bevy of mini-crises in various sectors; that is nothing new. What’s striking is that the Party is showing splits about how to keep progress going.

Two voices are sounding out from the political chorus.

One side maintains that nothing succeeds like past success.

But there are some cadres who bemoan the lack of enthusiasm for the Party.

Russell Leigh Moses is a Beijing-based analyst and professor who writes on Chinese politics. He is writing a book on the changing role of power in the Chinese political system.

Jack Ma, chief executive officer of China-based Alibaba Group Holding Co., on whether non-Chinese companies can make it big in China:

"There's Nokia, there's Microsoft, there's IBM, they're all very successful. If you want to do well in China, like any other place in the world, you should send the best people, the entrepreneurs, and serve the customers, instead of serving your bosses. There are a lot of hedge funds or gamblers—if they want to make quick money, I show no sympathy. Sorry about that. Gambling is difficult everywhere in the world."

Kaixin OpEd: This is advice from a highly successful Chinese businessman.

Alibaba's Jack Ma Full Session Video from D9 6/4/2011 3:00:00 PM

The full session interview of Alibaba's Jack Ma with Kara Swisher at the D9 Conference in Rancho Palos Verdes, California.

BEIJING (AP) — The growth of China’s imports accelerated in May in a sign that the world’s second-largest economy might not be slowing as sharply as some fear, though its exports weakened as global demand slowed.

A rise of imports probably indicates the increasing demand from within China for overseas products. This is a reflection of the wealth being spread more evenly and the incipient rise of rural/regional China.

BEIJING — Vietnam said on Friday that it would conduct live-fire naval exercises off its coast next week, a step that escalated a long-running dispute with China over territory in the South China Sea that both nations claim.

BEIJING — A 21-year-old music student who accidentally struck a young woman with his car, then silenced her by stabbing her to death on the roadway, was executed Tuesday in Xian, in northwestern China, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

The student, Yao Jiaxin, had lost an appeal of a death sentence handed down by a Xian court on April 22. The crime had fanned deep public resentment against the “fu er dai,” the “rich second generation” of privileged families who are widely believed to commit misdeeds with impunity because of their wealth or connections.

Kaixin OpEd – The response from America is somewhat subdued …… could it have anything to do with the death penalty in America I wonder?

Kaixin followed this trial with interest.

The 'fu er dai', the only children of the new rich, are one half of the problem. The other half is the only children of the powerful.

Only children are only children the world over.

Spoilt and self-centred. (Disclaimer: western Kaixin is an only child)

Kaixin has heard several stories over time about the only children of the rich and/or powerful getting away with, at times, murder.

Certainly, their behaviour was anti-social and needed to be curbed.

The legal system in China is not yet robust and independent, so money and/or power will generally do the trick. That is changing and it is not the policy of Beijing or the majority of Chinese, but the change is slow and at times frustrating.

It is not a class struggle as the NTY fondly hopes. It is the New China coming to terms with its growing wealth.

Intersected with an un-intended, but predictable, consequence of the one-child policy …. spoilt children without bounds, and a father who will do anything to protect them from the consequences of their actions.

It was an issue in China that needed to be addressed by Beijing. It was certainly causing social disquiet …. but far short of a class struggle.

After a series of similar incidents, Beijing finally decided to act and send a clear message.

Should we have pity for the student?

He ruthlessly killed another human being, a mother, because he did not want to be bothered dealing with her.

That arrogance must have come from his parents. The death of their child is a consequence of their poor parenting, of not teaching their child human values and responsibility.

He was caught up in events larger than himself or his parents.

China has a huge population, which needs strong laws.

Consistently enforced …… but that is another issue.

The death of this young man will not change the attitude of the only children of the rich and/or powerful.

An exclusive interview about the Chinese currency with Norman Chan, chief executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority

The yuan market in Hong Kong is growing rapidly. But looming as large as the city's swelling yuan-based bank accounts are questions about the currency's mainland backflow and quest for global acceptance.

Of all failures that haunt the IMF, the one that looms largest comes from its institutional insularity

Those who hoped for serious reform of the International Monetary Fund have to be very disappointed by the allegations of sexual assault against its director, Dominique Strauss-Kahn. If the charges prove true, this will end Strauss-Kahn's efforts at reforming an institution that is badly in need of reform.

Most people around the world do not realize the power that the IMF has in controlling their lives.

The Three Gorges Dam was once an untouchable symbol of China's determination to pursue economic growth over political reform. As criticism gets louder and the State Council pours in more cash to address festering shortcomings, the gigantic investment is now a harbinger of mounting political problems for China's authoritarian model of national development.

BEIJING — China’s three decades of rapid economic growth have left it with a “very grave” environmental situation even as it tries to move away from a development-at-all-costs strategy, senior government officials said on Friday.

Kaixin OpEd - All ‘great’ engineering projects have un-intended consequences. We humans like to think we can ‘engineer’ a solution to everything.

Perhaps not …

So it becomes a balance of the benefits v the negatives. As just noted, that cannot be fully calculated in advance. Some of the consequences must remain incalculable due to the limited human knowledge available at the time.

The decision to proceed with the project would have been made because it was felt the benefits outweighed the negatives.

China’s population may not be growing in size, but it is growing in terms of economic wealth. That places more and more demands on the environment.

As the first comment noted, China is out-sourcing some of the problems, ie: food production.

However, the reality for China when deciding to proceed with the project was that the domestic power demands would increase. The Three Gorges Dam helped to solve the power issue and also partially tamed a wild river ……. for good or ill.

There are two aspects to this current debate, about the un-intended consequences of the projects:

i) The ‘western’ media like to trumpet any issue in China as proof positive that China is a child and cannot handle these things like grownups, like for instance, America. Perhaps journalists and editors do not read history … ?? They certainly pander to a negative stance on issues related to China. ii) Environmentalists, I find, tend to live in a world of ‘ought’, not ‘is’. Yes, the human species ‘ought’ not have trashed the planet where it has, it ‘ought’ not have built large dams in the many countries, all of which have had un-intended consequences, … and so on. However, the ‘is’ demands that we either substantially lower the population, or we adapt the environment. Until the 20th century humans were able to just concentrate on adapting the environment. That is the probable mindset that commissioned the Three Gorges Dam, and other large dams around the planet. In the 21st century it is clear that we humans will have to adapt to the environment. It will be an interesting challenge.

In the mean time, the Three Gorges Dam is now a reality, an ‘is’. Beijing will address the consequences as they arise to the best of their engineers’ ability. Many of those ‘solutions’ will have un-intended consequences.

It is great political fodder for the west, which does not seem to notice the sound of tinkling glass as it hurls it rocks at China.

A cadre writes to his boss that a nuanced view of the stirrings for democracy in the Arab world allows these events to be seen as a blessing in disguise for China's leadership. Most Chinese, yearning for stability behind the Great Wall, will emerge more pro-government, our cadre writes, even as American pundits and flat-earthers are fooled into believing otherwise.

I found the article - (For the naive, gullible ones: it is a fake!) aside – most interesting.

My wife Xiaosui and I, Graeme, publish a website Kaixin

It has taken some time, but we finally found our voice, the voice of middle-China, the view from the street.

Xiasosui was born in 1966, spent a fair amount of time on prison farms during the Cultural Revolution, went to university in the 1980’s, became a teacher, opened her own small school in Nanning.

For her miss-deeds or good-deeds, she married an Australian ren and came to live in Australia in 2007.

Xiaosui is immensely proud of being Chinese and of what China has achieved in the last 30 years. She lived through it all and in her small way helped build the China we see today.

Her background is distinctly middle-class, as is mine.

The general views about the spread of the unrest in the Middle East and how it is perceived in China are, in general, her views and the view of her family, friends and colleagues in China.

Nothing is ever that simple in cross-cultural terms, but close enough.

I was particularly interested in the following:

‘People can call from China to America, or vice versa, but still people carry on speaking their own languages. One speaks Chinese and the other English, and often they do not speak each other's language and do not understand each other.

Moreover, even when they do so, they rarely understand each other's culture and anthropological background. It is something that involves individual psychologies that most people carry within themselves, totally unaware. We do know from practical experience that direct communications, if involving something more complex than buying or selling a certain item, can create many misunderstandings and false perceptions of each other's reasons and motives.

Before direct communications, these misunderstandings were more difficult because interaction was harder and because people proceeded to keep in touch with extra caution, better aware of differences in culture and psychology.’

That rang loud clanging bells for me.

I have not promoted Kaixin to date, concentrating on developing the content and finding our ‘voice’.

However I do make and entry into Facebook and Twitter every day. The response from Facebook (where every female seems to be a romance novelist) and elsewhere in America ranges from no interest to hatred. There are some who seem to have open minds, but in general no.

In matters of sovereignty over the South China Sea, China has a split personality. At the weekend, Defense Minister Liang Guangjie was murmuring familiar, comforting mantras about Beijing's outlook on reefs and islands from south of Taiwan to the Malacca Straits. Scarcely days earlier, the Chinese coast guard was engaged in unprecedented thuggery.

The new African Union headquarters being built by China in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's capital, will become a towering symbol of Beijing's entry into supra-national African politics. The shiny complex is a free (for now) "gift" - like so many others across the continent - but as Maoist visions of post-colonial solidarity fade, it offers leverage for China to make less brotherly demands of Africa's next generation.

While the Arab Spring has rocked China's business interests in Africa, moves by Chinese contractors to quickly isolate themselves from the violence have reinforced accusations of neo-colonialism. As the financial fallout from the unrest spirals, Asia is being touted as the new centerpiece of China's investment strategy. However, the struggle with the West for African influence is far from over.

Just as the Greek Titan god Prometheus was released from captivity, the United States is being "released" from the chains of Afghanistan and is pursuing with renewed vigor its Eurasian energy strategy. A Russian-Chinese initiative to embrace Pakistan and India could deal a devastating blow to the US's drive, coupled with tapping into Turkmenistan's massive gas reserves.

Russia's u-turn in support of the United States claim in Libya that Muammar Gaddafi must go shows United States-Russia discourse is becoming distinctly conciliatory. While the change of heart leaves China frustrated that Russia has effectively dumped a "joint cooperation" project on the Middle East, on final reckoning, Libya is just a blip in the relationship.

India's involvement in Africa, where it denies vying with China for influence and resources, is set to deepen with a pledge of billions of dollars in lines of credit, help in building infrastructure and additional assistance in developing the skills of the continent's young people.

Russia, India and China, core members of the BRICS grouping also comprising Brazil and South Africa, have joined with Western countries that have closed ranks and staked their claim in unseemly hurry to keep the top International Monetary Fund job as their exclusive preserve, in the form of French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde. The saga has badly bruised BRICS and dented its credibility.

Mao Zedong romanticists are so worried that the mythology of the Great Helmsman may be officially debunked they are calling for the growing band of Mao bashers to be prosecuted. The campaign is unlikely to gain official traction though: China's leaders, including Red Book-waving Chongqing party boss Bo Xilai, use Mao's words, never his policies, and only when it suits them.

THE ROVING EYE

An extreme traveler, Pepe's nose for news has taken him to all parts of the Pepe Escobar globe. He was in Afghanistan and interviewed the military leader of the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance, Ahmad Shah Masoud, a couple of weeks before his assassination

Kaixin Search Engine

Research China

Kaixin has a wealth of archived news & articles on all aspects of China.

You can SEARCH the WWW but there is no QUALITY CONTROL of the articles. This can waste a lot of time. ALL of the articles in Kaixin are substantive and come from well-respected sources. No dross, means no loss (of time) to you.

Actresses perform a dance at an evening party in Jiaxing City, east China's Zhejiang Province, June 3, 2011. The 2011 China Jiaxing Dragon Boat Festival Folk Culture Festival opened Friday in Jiaxing. The traditional Dragon Boat Festival falls on June 6 this year.

On June 8, Chinese Classics and Intangible Cultural Heritage Special Exhibition opened in Beijing at the National Library in Beijing, June 8, 2011, showcasing nearly 200 precious historical documents on intangible cultural heritage. During the exhibition, a number of artists, who possess the state-level intangible cultural heritage skills, are invited to demonstrate their traditional skills for the audience.

It is 11 o'clock in the morning in Xinli village, Daxing district, Beijing. Zhou Xiaohong sits on the roadside, hands propping up her chin.

She's a little sleepy, but she tries to follow every move of her 3-year-old son, Tong Tong. He is entertaining himself beside her, using chunks of wood as building blocks.

Tong Tong has a 3-centimeter scar on his right cheek. The scar is the result of an accident on May 9, three days after the Xinshijie kindergarten, which Tong Tong had attended for almost a year, closed.

Xinshijie was one of about 200 illegal kindergartens - those without business permits and sanitation licenses - that the Daxing district education bureau closed in the first week of May.

Most of their pupils were children of migrant workers, who appreciated the lower fees and the flexibility of attendance hours.

After the kindergarten was shut down, Tong Tong was locked at home alone while his parents went to work. He broke a glass and fell on the shards.

A boy enjoys riding his bike around Xinli village in Beijing's Daxing district. There's much time to kill, or explore, since the forced closing of about 200 illegal kindergartens

Wives know that playing away will result in having one more mouth to feed -- literally

Wiping the last, fuzzy vestiges of sleep from my face, I shuffled into the kitchen and fired up the stove. When the oatmeal was cooked I poured a cup of coffee and carried the tray over to my husband. A quick kiss of gratitude in return and I went back to make my own breakfast. It struck me then why polygamist marriages consist of many wives but only one husband: serving one man is more than enough.

From the daily news bringing us tales of celebrity men and their mistresses, to the predilection of well-dressed women scouring the lobbies of office buildings at lunchtime for a speedy "language lesson", it's clear that a significant proportion of married men have rationalized away the bonds of monogamy -- but what about the wives?

Jokhang Temple is the key center of Buddhist pilgrimage for centuries. In the past centuries, the temple complex has undergone several important expansions and renovations. But experts on cultural heritage protection have pointed out that it's really a piece of work.

The wooden structure used to appear extremely shabby.

Time has worn out the wooden beams and rafters as visible signs of distortions, crevice and moth-eaten fabric are everywhere.

Now, the decayed wooden components have been replaced and the askew ones are adjusted. They have also undergone rot-proofing and moth-proofing treatment.

The Tashihunpo Monastery is one of the six big monasteries in the southwestern Autonomous Region. With a history of over 600 years, the monastery is the main venue where generations of the Panchen Lama carried out religious and political activities.

A major renovation project started in 2009, trying to restore the luster of the ancient construction.

Located at the foot of Mt. Tara, the Tashihunpo Monastery was founded in 1447 and was expanded by the fourth and successive Panchen Lamas.

In the center of one of its major halls stands the world's tallest bronze statue with a height of 26 meters. The monastery is a big draw for Buddhist followers as well as tourists from around the world.

Visitors to Xi'an International Horticultural Expo are invited to embark on a musical and cultural romp through the island of Taiwan. As one of the headline events at the Expo, Taiwan Cultural Week was kicked off over last weekend.

A performance of the "Wild Fire Music" Band from Taiwan opened the Taiwan Cultural Week on Sunday.

"Wild Fire Music" is one of the few bands in Taiwan that work diligently on promoting traditional music among the island's indigenous communities.

Brightly dressed with ethnic costumes, the singers were crooning a folk ballad with a refreshing and intoxicating melody.

Next, another art group presented a modern rendition of playing diabolo, or the Chinese yo-yo. With a combination of multi-media projection and superb techniques, the program has been well received during its tour to thirty countries.

Another tradition worth preserving is "Kesi" -- a style of Chinese silk tapestry, admired for its extremely detailed pictorial designs, lightness and clarity of double-sided pattern.

Now in order to arouse public attention of the traditional craft, an exclusive exhibition for Kesi products was held for the first time in Shanghai last week.

First appearing a thousand years ago in the Tang Dynasty, the popularity of Kesi tapestry reached its height during the Ming and Qing Dynasty. The highlight of the exhibition falls on several calligraphy works of kesi, as well as three replicas of an emperor's gown from the Qing Dynasty.

Unlike continuous weft brocade, each color in Kesi style is woven from a separate bobbin, making the method both technically demanding and time-consuming. However, according to one expert, that's also where the charm comes from.

Few people would argue that the craft that most represents China's Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) is cloisonne enamelware.

The mainly blue metal artwork that requires more than 100 steps to finish used to be recognized as something reserved for the royal family and the nobility, not only because of the complicated process needed to make it, but also because of its price, which took into account the cost of pure gold and lots of copper, things ordinary folk could hardly dream of in that era.

Completing a piece of cloisonne is time-consuming. Craftsmen say it takes about three months to finish a vase only 15 centimeters high; pieces as large as 1 meter take much longer.

"There are roughly six major steps," said Zhang Li, a staff member of the Beijing Enamel Factory, the only time-honored brand in this industry. "The most important one is the second, pinching copper wire, which is the first thing we do in our factory."

The Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region government is stepping up efforts to preserve and promote local ethnic culture. Some of the initiations underway include introducing folk music into the college curriculum, setting up intangible heritage protection centers, and encouraging people to make money with their craftsmanship.

Let's find out what's being done to rejuvenate the precious grassland culture.

This is a lecture on Long Tune given to students in the Arts College of the Inner Mongolian University. Long Tune is a distinctive style of folk song sung by generations of nomadic herdsmen. It has also been inscribed into the UNESCO Intangible Heritage List.

Chengdu became the first Chinese city to be named "Role Model for Resilient Development" by the United Nations.

The award was presented on May 11, 2011, during the 3rd UN Conference Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction at the Geneva International Conference Center in Switzerland. The lobby of the conference center displayed dramatic pictures of the disaster relief and post-disaster reconstruction work of Chengdu following the deadly 2008 Sichuan earthquake.

Words and pictures captured the incredible challenge of a region where 1 million people were left homeless by an earthquake that caused an estimated economic loss of 124.7 billion yuan. Chengdu immediately began responding, leading rescue and renovation work involving 14 million people.

Chengdu 成都) is the capital of Sichuan province, of Southwest China, maintaining sub-provincial administrative status. Chengdu is also one of the most important economic centres, transportation and communication hubs in Western China. According to the 2007 Public Appraisal for Best Chinese Cities for Investment, Chengdu was chosen as one of the top ten cities to invest in out of a total of 280 urban centers in China.

More than four thousand years ago, the prehistorical Bronze Age culture of Jīnshā (金沙) established itself in this region. The fertile Chengdu Plain, on which Chengdu is located, is also known as "天府之国" (Tiānfǔzhi Guó), which literally means "the country of heaven", or more often seen translated as "the Land of Abundance". It was recently named China's 4th-most livable city by China Daily.(Wikipedia)

Clockwise from top: Anshun Bridge on the River Jin; Jinli Street near Wuhou Temple; Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding; and Huaxi campus of Sichuan University

The protection of giant pandas is a black-and-white issue for the 'pambassadors' who recently graduated from a training program in Chengdu. Matt Hodges reports

Having spent the previous few days tracking wild pandas in a remote Chinese jungle, Florida resident Ashley Robertson returned to the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding to find her cubs all grown up.

Robertson, one of six "pambassadors" who graduated from a five-week training program at the base to promote panda protection on Nov 5, found the cubs she had taken care of were bigger, naughtier and devouring stacks more bamboo.

Judge Wu Xiangbo (third left) hears a divorce case with Tribunal Clerk Feng Guangjian in a makeshift court in a village in Xishui county of Northwest China's Guizhou province, May 23, 2011. A Chinese banner reads "Mobile court of Xishui People's Court". A China's national emblem which is usually hung on the wall of a Chinese courtroom is displayed on a table under the banner. Wu and Feng, judges with the People's Court of Xishui County, go to the county's remote villages to hear cases, so that villagers don't have to travel a long distance to a court to submit lawsuits. "It's always been difficult for people living in remote rural areas to make lawsuits, and it's hard to enforce judgment in these areas. (As a result,) A mobile court helps us to hear local cases that are simple and clear," said Wu Xiangbo.

BEIJING - The drought that has affected 35 million people and caused an economic loss of almost 15 billion yuan ($2.3 billion) in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River is a persistent "yellow alarm", the National Meteorological Center said on Sunday.

Fishing boats are stranded on grassland, which was once the bed of Poyang Lake — China’s largest fresh water lake, in Jiujiang, East China’s Jiangxi province, on Saturday. Because of a severe drought, the area of Poyang Lake has shrunken to less than half its usual size.

Tibet is an inseparable part of China and its fate has always been closely linked with that of this country, said top political advisor Jia Qinglin at a symposium marking the 60th anniversary of Tibet's peaceful liberation on Monday.

In the past six decades, Tibet has seen the earthshaking changes. How an open and modern Tibet impressed the westerners?

In 2009, a German writer Tom Kahn published a novel titled "Das Tibet Projekt", meaning "Project about Tibet" in English. This book introduces many true stories of Tibet which are different from what most western countries propagated.

Tom Kahn said, "For most of the westerners, the only way to know about Tibet is via the local media reports, which led to a very narrow negative and one-sided understanding of Tibet. The first impression is half the battle. That's why many westerners are still willing to believe what the western media propagandized Tibet."

"As far as I know, the western journalists required by their own television stations only report certain images of Tibet. Like the German proverb described: 'When you hold the hammer in hand, you will see all the problems like nails.' So those journalists usually dig out the negative news, inside of the positive sides. That's how the one-sidedness reports come out."

In April this year, Tom Kahn visited Tibet invited by Chinese government. During the tour, he saw a different Tibet from what most westerners thought. Overall developments have occured on the plateau region, Tibet. And people are making a good living and are contented.

In Tom Kahn's mind, Tibet is a modern place with great developments. The increasing flight courses, and popularized English and newly built beer manufacturing workshops adopting German technology have added vigor to this holy place.

Tired of those characterless business hotel chains or comfort-deprived inns? The capital offers some marvelous choices for you. Hotels are no longer a place to sleep, but also a place to experience luxury and uniqueness. For the sake of thorough pleasure, we have selected 5 top boutique and designer hotels to maximize your enjoyment during your time in the capital.

Performances by international participating organizations are scheduled throughout the ongoing Horticultural Exposition in China's host city of Xi'an. The photo taken by a CRI reporter on location shows Samba staged by Brazilian dancers.

A love story that had its beginnings in 1953 Hangzhou, survives personal and political upheavals, to come to fruition decades later. Liu Zhihua reports

It was in the autumn of 1953 that Danny Li met Yuan Dibao in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, and fell in love. But fate intervened forcing the pair to live on two different continents for 54 years. Miraculously, in May, the couple came together again and got married in September.

Their story became a hot news on Chinese newspapers and TV stations. Netizens declared their love "was the purest in the world".

"It was like a dream. I never expected to see him ever again," 83-year-old Li says.

Li was born in Beijing in 1927, to a French mother and Chinese father.

Yuan Dibao, 82, and Danny Li, 83, come together again and get married after separating for more than half a century. Feng Xiao Fei From Dongnan Morning Newspaper / for China Daily

In Chinese, Feng Huang stands for Phoenix. The mythical bird is a good omen of longevity. The town of Feng Huang gets its name from a legend saying these fantastic birds flew over the town and found it so beautiful they hovered over it. Located on the western edge of Hunan Province, Feng Huang's beauty lives up to the story.

One of China's best ancient paintings is to be restored. After a separation of 359 years, the two pieces of "Dwelling in Fuchun Mountain," are being brought back together again. To mark the occasion, there will be an exhibition at the Taipei Palace Museum from June 1st to September 5th.

After a separation of 359 years, the two pieces of "Dwelling in Fuchun Mountain," are being brought back together again.

At a key moment in “A Beautiful Life,” Shu Qi explodes into a teary outburst over her failing relationship with a married executive, who dumps her.

That’s about as spectacular as the action gets in this tear-jerker from director Andrew Lau, who is best known for high-energy action movies. Set against a backdrop of China’s bustling, smoggy capital, “A Beautiful Life” plays out like a 1930s Hollywood soaper: an unlikely romance between an honest Beijing cop, played by Liu Ye, and a materialistic Hong Kong woman, whom he rescues from her self-destructive life.

Food writer Fuschia Dunlop brings stinky European cheeses to Shaoxing, capital of “stinking and fermented” (chou mei) delicacies, and compares tastes with the locals. From Slate (originally published in the Financial Times):

At the Xianheng, a waitress cut the cheeses into pieces, and the assembled tasters began to pick them up with their chopsticks, sniffing and tasting. And where I had been impressed by what cheese and stinky soya products had in common, these culinary professionals were immediately struck by their differences. "Although in some ways you could say the flavours of cheese and fermented beancurd are similar," said Mao, "vegetable stinky foods are very clean and clear in the mouth (qing kou), and they disperse quickly, while milky foods are greasy in the mouth (ni kou), they coat your tongue and palate, and they have a long, lingering aftertaste."

Two other chefs said the cheeses had a heavy shan wei (muttony odour), an ancient term used by southern Chinese to describe the slightly unsavoury tastes associated with the northern nomads. Another said that the selection "smells like Russians". "The difference," he added, "is that the stinky things Chinese people eat give them smelly breath, while stinky dairy things affect the sweat that comes out of your skin."

SHIYAN, Hubei - On a sweltering afternoon, a group of Europeans in traditional white Chinese shirts and dark baggy pants sit in a big circle on a lawn meditating. After about half an hour, they start to practice tai chi in pairs, pushing each other's hands.

They are from the Wudang Five Dragons Tai Chi School in the Wudang Mountains, Central China's Hubei province. The mountains attract tens of thousands of foreign kungfu fans every year, not only for its deep Taoism culture but also for its legendary Wudang tai chi martial arts.

Unlike other kungfu schools in Wudang, the two teachers are both German, rather than Chinese.

Norman Torok (L) and Ismet Himmet, both from Germany, practice tai chi at the Five Dragons Palace in the Wudang Mountains, Central China's Hubei province

Students and teachers at Peking University are committed to keeping Kunqu Opera, one of the world's oldest and most refined art forms, Han Bingbin reports.

Crowned as the mother to many forms of Chinese opera, Kunqu Opera has been refined by musicians and literati through hundreds of years until it is now considered one of the world's most precise art forms. However, like many old art forms, the opera style is being crowded out by modern artistic tastes. Experts and teachers have realized that the best way to preserve and promote Kunqu Opera is to rely on the vitality of youth and teach and perform it at colleges.

Peking University launched its Kunqu Opera Inheritance Project in 2009, aiming to spread the word among students within five years through performances, lectures and workshops.

Virtuoso Pianist Lang Lang has been telling CCTV of the childhood pressures he endured before becoming a worldwide star. The 28 year-old classical pianist is in London for a record breaking concert with 100 children and 50 Steinway pianos. He joined our London Correspondent Richard Bestic to share memories of his childhood and his happiness at inspiring a new generation.

Lang Lang was in playful mood for this unprecedented event.

100 children drawn from the length and breadth of Britain learning from the Master at London's Royal Festival Hall.

Welcome to “Chinawood,” the world’s largest outdoor film studio in the fastest-growing film market. At more than 2,500 acres, Hengdian World Studios, as it is officially known, is larger than Universal and Paramount Studios combined, boasting a full-scale replica of the Forbidden City, a Qin Dynasty palace and an evening variety show involving volcanic explosions.

If you love a place, it's the people who are responsible - that's what reporter Feng Xin experienced during her 20-day backpack multimedia reporting in Tibet. In her travelogue, she tells you what her biggest barrier was and what struck her most in Tibet.

Flowers are usually popular for their beautiful colors and sweet scents. But there is one flower at the Beijing Arboretum that's attracting visitors for a different reason.

The plant is called the Amorphophallus titanum. But most people know it by its more common name, the corpse flower, because it exudes the smell of rotten flesh.

Originally native to the tropical rainforests on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, the plant rarely blossoms, even in the wild. In terms of artificial cultivation, there have been only 134 recorded blooms worldwide. And in China, this is the first.

This plant is now growing by ten centimeters everyday, but its flower is yet to bloom to its full potential, which is when the smell becomes the worst. Park staff expects this flower to fully bloom on May 26 or 27. And once that happens, the flower's full bloom lasts no more than 48 hours.

So if you want to get a closer look – or smell – of the flower that smells like a corpse, you'd better hurry up.

The bow and arrow played a big part in the history of human development. Not only are they hunting tools, they are also good fighting weapons. In the developing history of ethnic groups, bows and arrows are very frequently mentioned. Xibe, which is located in Xinjiang's Qapqal Xibe autonomous county, is an example of such history.

1764 AD, Xibe took orders from Qianlong, the emperor of the Qing dynasty, to move west to guard the country’s frontier. Their excellent archery skills made them a very strong group.

A decoration for traditional Chinese wedding is seen at a museum in Ninghai, east China's Zhejiang Province, May 18, 2011. A museum in Ninghai, highlighting objects related to the wedding customs in east Zhejiang Province since Ming Dynasty (1368-1644 AD) and Qing Dynasty (1616-1911 AD), opened to public on Wednesday. The wedding customs of east Zhejiang Province was enlisted as one of the national intangible cultural heritages.

Many cities have slogans to entice you to visit and spend your tourist dollars. These are usually written by some tourism office or travel agency, and no matter how clever or well thought out, they often fall on the deaf ears of seasoned travelers or the cynical.

But there are adages that are time-tested - like this one, which roughly translates to: Up in the sky there is heaven, down on earth there is Suzhou and Hangzhou.

That's a pretty bold declaration when you consider the size of China and the many beautiful places to see within its borders. Yet, Suzhou's beauty has won it boasting rights.

Suzhou, built in 514 BC, has a storied past.

Marco Polo spent time there in 1276 while on the Silk Road. Sun Tzu wrote The Art of War in Suzhou when it was the kingdom of Wu.

TAIYUAN - Authorities in north China's Shanxi Province said Sunday that they would finish the application for the Sakyamuni Pagoda, the oldest wooden structures in the world, by July for it to be included on the UNESCO list of cultural relics by 2013.

The Sakyamuni Pagoda, also known as the Yingxian Pagoda as it was housed in the Fogong Temple of Yingxian County, is the oldest full-wooden pagoda still standing in China and believed to be the oldest of its kind in the world.

Standing 67.31 meters tall, the octagonal pagoda was built in 1,056 AD during the Khitan-led Liao Dynasty.

Due to the dating pressure, millions of China’s singletons log on dating websites to find love, especially for men, which has been driving a major boom in on-line dating business.

Where does this dating pressure come from? As a Chinese saying goes,”A man should get married on coming of age, so should a woman ” Nowadays, Chinese parents commonly expect their daughters to be married by the time they’re 25 and sons by the age of 30. There’s even a word for those who are not married by the time expected: Shengnan and shengnv, literally a “left-over man” or “left-over woman”. Shengnan and Shengnv are bearing all aspects of pressure coming from their worried and pushy parents as well as their busy jobs. “I was very busy; my life circle was very small” Ada Zhang, one of my ex-colleagues, said, “So I turned to on-line dating, and I made it, now I’m married. I believe everyone can find their true love on the internet” She is just one of millions of Chinese people who are turning to on-line dating as a solution to their relationship woes in a society where the pressure to find a partner can be very oppressive.

According to research by the National Women's Union and Baihe.com in 2010, China currently has 180 million bachelors, 23.8% of who are going on dates arranged by their parents, the rest are looking for dates by themselves. A male netizen makes a joke of his being-busy in his blog,“if I’m not on a date, I must be on the way to it”. Among 180 million bachelors, some ask for dates from matchmakers, some “sneak” into dating agencies in a low profile, some even step out and chat up with girls on the streets, however, up to half of whom are thought to be looking for love on-line.

By Jan, 2011, there are three main stream on-line dating websites: Jiayuan.com with 32 million registered members, Baihe.com and Zhenai.com with 26 million members each, which all together account for nearly half of singletons in China.

Those numbers mean big business. In china, the combination between the immense demand of finding love and the advanced network has started generating the windfall profits. Every on-line site now is like a 24-hour convenient store, collecting and selling their member’s information. What makes people jealous is that those websites are taking in billions of revenues annually, with the annual growth rate at 200%. Every year, there are 20 million singletons who would become the potential clients for the on-line dating sites. According to Time.com, it's estimated that online dating sites attracted three million paying customers in 2010, who collectively spent more than $150 million.